History, B.A.

Program of Study

History interprets the past for the present by exploring the institutions, ideas, cultures, and creations of men and women in the context of time and place.

It is focused on change over time; both change of the subjects of study and of historians’ attempts to make sense of those subjects. History ranges over all of recorded human experience, drawing from and placing in context the achievements of the arts, sciences, social sciences, and other humanities.

The student of history will learn to evaluate evidence critically, to sift and organize evidence fairly and persuasively, to analyze the evidence for its patterns and meanings, and to integrate this into a broad scope of human experience. Historical study provides perspective, helping individuals to place their own lives, values, and world events in context, and to recognize the processes of change that have brought them to the present.

Working from these general principles and the special strengths of its faculty, the history department has designated the following 5 specific outcomes of a major in history.

Program Student Learning Outcomes

Students who graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in History will be able to:

Develop historical research questions, formulate appropriate research strategies, and critically evaluate evidence about the past;

Develop and defend historical arguments, demonstrating an understanding of different theoretical approaches to historical interpretation;

Effectively communicate, in clear and convincing prose, an understanding of the causes of historical change;

Evaluate the influence of new digital and multimedia formats on the practice and presentation of history; and

Describe several varieties of experience found in the historical record and explain why diversity is a critical component of history.

Career Opportunities

History majors find careers in a great variety of fields. History is a traditional preparation for law, foreign service, teaching, public affairs, journalism, and work in museums or historical societies. History majors hold such diverse positions as presidents of banks, personnel officers, senators, network news anchors, purchasing agents, city managers, judges, business owners, and public safety officers. In addition, there is a growing arena of careers directly related to history—museum directors, curators, historical consultants, archivists, historical site administrators, and historic preservation officers. Both government agencies and private corporations hire historians to research, analyze, and organize their records. Many of these latter careers require some graduate work in history.

Preparation for the Major

Completion of twelve (12) units of lower-division history study, which must include two two-course sequences, each focusing on a different world area. Completion of the lower-division general education requirements, especially the writing composition course, is also strongly recommended prior to undertaking upper-division coursework.

Major Requirements

In addition to the lower-division courses completed as preparation, the major requires thirty-three (33) upper-division units, including successful completion of HIST 301 and a 400-level history seminar course. Of these units, one course must have the majority of its content before 1800. Courses in the major must be taken from at least three different world areas that include: Africa, Ancient History, Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, United States, and Comparative/Transnational History. One course must have considerable content on Women’s History/Gender. Digital History Requirement: One upper-division course must include explicit digital history and new media technology content. This may consist of (1) a course topic that uses the critical study of new media technology/digital history as an organizing theme and/or (2) course assignments that require the applied use of digital tools. All history courses counted toward the major, including Preparation for the Major courses, must be completed with a grade of C (2.0) or better. No more than three (3) units of internship may be counted toward the major.

Total (33 Units)

Courses must be taken from at least three areas that include: Africa, Ancient History, Asia, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, United States, and Comparative/Transnational History.

Note: One course must have considerable content on Women’s History/Gender.

Digital History Requirement: One upper-division course must include explicit digital history and new media technology content. This may consist of (1) a course topic that uses the critical study of new media technology/digital history as an organizing theme and/or (2) course assignments that require the applied use of digital tools.

Note: requirements a, b, c, d may be fulfilled simultaneously with other upper-division History requirements.

Single-Subject Preparation for Teaching Option

Students interested in majoring in History and teaching at the secondary level may elect the Single-Subject Preparation for Teaching Option. Successful completion of this option will allow students to waive the California Subject Examination for Teachers (CSET) in History/Social Science. For certification of this option, students must maintain a 2.7 GPA both in overall work and in all courses used to complete the major and option.

Digital History Requirement: One upper-division course must include explicit digital history and new media technology content. This may consist of (1) a course topic that uses the critical study of new media technology/digital history as an organizing theme and/or (2) course assignments that require the applied use of digital tools.

Students must complete and submit a portfolio of their coursework with a written narrative reflecting on their pre-credential teaching experience, and must complete all of the above courses with a GPA of 2.7 or above.

Minimum Total (120 Units)

Students must take a sufficient number of elective units to bring the total number of units to a minimum of 120